Construction of the third and final leg of the Cross Island Line (CRL) could wrap up at the end of 2033, The Straits Times has learnt.

This is the first time an indicative date for the completion of Singapore’s eighth MRT line has been made known publicly, and the third phase will give commuters in the west another option to travel by rail and connect to other lines.

According to recent documents seen by ST, tenders for the main civil construction contracts for phase three could be called starting from the third quarter of 2024, while the tendering process for architectural works could begin from the second quarter of 2031.

This was shown in an indicative timeline that was included in a Feb 7 tender for mechanical and electrical engineering services for the final phase of the rail line.

Tender documents said the timeline is subject to change as details are still being developed, but the main civil works look slated to end by the fourth quarter of 2033.

With time needed to test the relevant systems and trains, this means the last phase of the CRL will likely start operations only from 2034 or later.

Built in three phases, the CRL will span the length of Singapore, from Changi to Tuas, and link major hubs such as the future Jurong Lake District and Punggol Digital District.

Announced in the 2013 Land Transport Master Plan, the entire MRT line was initially targeted to be ready by around 2030.

But this has been pushed back, with only phase one, which is 29km long and comprises 12 stations from Aviation Park in Changi to Bright Hill in Sin Ming, slated to open by then.

The pandemic had delayed construction of rail projects here by a year, and the CRL also faced issues in the early planning stages, when concerns were raised about it running directly under the Central Catchment Nature Reserve.

A years-long environmental impact assessment was conducted as a result.

In response to ST queries, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) did not confirm whether phase three is slated to be finished by end-2033.

Instead, it said it would have a clearer indication of the completion timelines for the two remaining phases only after advanced engineering studies are done.

Such studies for phase two, which include architectural and engineering design as well as associated services, will wrap up later this year. After the station alignment is finalised, LTA will call for tenders for civil construction.

For phase three, tenders for similar studies have been called.

These are expected to start later this year and take two years to complete.

The scope of work for the appointed consultant includes design work for the alignment and stations, as well as developing the corresponding technical specifications.

Phase three will be about 13km long and consists of at least four stations between Jurong and Tuas, of which two will be interchanges.

An integrated train and bus depot in Tuas will be built.

There are provisions for a fifth MRT station along this stretch, although this may be a shell structure that will be fitted out in tandem with future developments, rather than a fully constructed one.

One of the proposed interchanges for phase three, labelled CR21 in the tender documents, is expected to connect with the upcoming Jurong Region Line (JRL).

The other proposed interchange, labelled CR23, is slated to link up with the East-West Line (EWL) and appears to be the western terminus.

This is consistent with a report by ST last year about possible CRL interchanges at Jurong Pier station on the JRL and Gul Circle station on the EWL.

This also means that phase two will be roughly 14km long and likely comprise six stations between Bright Hill and Jurong, including two possible interchanges at King Albert Park and Clementi.

It is not clear when phase two is expected to be completed.

The latest LTA tender also provided new details about other works for phase three.

Future phase three stations are expected to have retail and advertising space, and achieve platinum status under the Building and Construction Authority’s Green Mark certification scheme, which evaluates a building’s environmental impact.

The stations could have solar panels and other renewable energy systems.

Meanwhile, the proposed depot in Tuas will consist of a train depot at ground level, which will be connected to the future Integrated Train Testing Centre located at the former site of Raffles Country Club, and a multi-storey bus depot that can house 350 staff and 650 buses.

The CRL, once completed, will be the longest fully underground rail line here.

For a start, it will use six-car trains, with a possible expansion to eight-car types in future. It is expected to have a daily ridership of more than 600,000 in the initial years, and more than one million in the longer term.

A segment of the CRL will also extend from Pasir Ris to Punggol.

Announced in 2020, the four-station extension will benefit more than 40,000 households when operational in 2032.

What we know about CRL so far

Slated to be completed in the 2030s, the Cross Island Line will be built in three phases.

The first phase is 29km long and comprises 12 stations from Aviation Park in Changi to Bright Hill in Sin Ming.

To date, $6.1 billion in civil contracts has been awarded for 10 of the 12 stations. This phase is expected to be completed in 2030.

Details for CRL’s phases two and three are scant as engineering studies are still ongoing and station alignments have not been finalised.

But there have been clues, most recently from an MRT system map that was put up online late last year.

The map, which was later taken down, showed “conceptual alignments” for the two phases, which include 11 stations serving Bukit Timah, Clementi and West Coast before terminating in Tuas.

Tentative plans for the western leg also indicate that four of the proposed stations are slated to be interchanges that will link to existing or upcoming rail lines.

According to the map, there will also be a new terminus station on the eastern leg of the CRL in future.

Likely to be located at the future Changi Airport Terminal 5, it could be an interchange that will link to a future extension of the Thomson-East Coast Line.

Source: https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/transport/construction-of-cross-island-line-could-be-completed-in-end-2033